Upon entering the watery realm, the scene that unfolded before Iris stunned her for a moment. At the end of the water mirror sat a massive palace, adorned with countless crystal lamps that emitted a warm and gentle glow.

The main color scheme of the palace was silver-white, and the walls were decorated with peculiar symbols that vaguely outlined the shape of a dragon. "What kind of place is this?" Iris muttered to herself, noticing the ancient and mysterious engravings on the dragon pillars that stretched towards the depths of the palace.

She immediately opened the star gate, allowing Baiying to come out and translate the dragon inscriptions here. "Mother, how was my performance?" Baiying proudly straightened her chest, awaiting praise. Iris patted her on the head and said admiringly, "Brilliant!"

Baiying grinned happily and said, "Hehe, thank you for your approval, Mother." Baiying looked around the palace and couldn't help but ask, "Mother, where are we?"

"I don't know," Iris shrugged. "In any case, let's explore and see if there's any danger."

"Okay."

The mother and daughter cautiously entered the palace, carefully examining their surroundings. The layout of the palace was quite simple, with only one passage to choose from and a giant stone platform placed on each side.

The stone platforms were adorned with lifelike dragon reliefs, each with its own unique appearance—some fierce and brutal, others cold and noble, and still others elegant and beautiful. Iris looked at these reliefs with a hint of vigilance in her eyes.

She suddenly felt that this place was more like a place of worship than a treasure trove. Iris followed the passage through several rooms and arrived at the deepest part of the palace. She pushed open the heavy marble door, and a rich fragrance filled the air.

Before her eyes was a veiled woman sitting on the Your Majesty seat, her eyes tightly closed, resembling a sleeping beauty. Iris carefully observed the woman. She was draped in a white robe with armor-like decorations on her shoulders. A dragon pendant hung from her earlobe.

Dragon horns adorned her head, and a white dragon tail coiled behind her. Her slender figure was as elegant as snow. Baiying looked at the dragon woman on the Your Majesty seat and felt an inexplicable familiarity. She couldn't help but whisper, "Mother..."

"Hush!" Iris gestured for her to be quiet.

The woman seemed to be sleeping. Iris approached stealthily, ready to take her out with one shot and see the true face of the dragon woman. Just as Iris raised her gun, the woman slowly opened her eyes, revealing a pair of pitch-black pupils filled with longing.

Tears began to well up in her eyes, clear and translucent, slowly sliding down her cheeks. "Mother..." the dragon woman on the Your Majesty seat tentatively called out in a hoarse voice.

Iris was startled, tightly gripping her spear. She was about to launch a surprise attack but was thrown off by the word "Mother". Whose child was this, calling her mother upon seeing her...

Suddenly, the dragon woman on the Your Majesty seat stood up, opening her arms and rushing into Iris's embrace. Iris was so startled that she almost let go, but managed to steady herself in time.

"Mother, I can see you again..." the dragon woman tightly held Iris's neck. "I will change everything, so that you and my sister can live."

Iris stiffened, allowing the dragon woman to embrace her. She felt bewildered, completely unable to understand the dragon woman's words, not knowing what she was talking about.

Do her mother and I look alike?

But I'm a vampire! How could I look like a dragon?

At the very least, I would need a pair of dragon horns and a dragon tail!

Baiying, who was standing at a distance, was a little confused. She scratched her head and stared at the dragon woman in confusion, "Huh? Is she calling her mother?"

"Who are you?" Iris couldn't help but ask in a cold voice, "Food can be eaten randomly, but mothers cannot be recognized randomly."

Upon hearing this, the dragon woman released Iris's neck and slowly took off her veil, revealing a heroic and beautiful face.

"I am Baiying, Baiying from two thousand years later," she introduced herself seriously, her fingertips brushing over the delicate face of the girl in front of her.

"Two thousand years later?" Iris frowned and carefully observed Baiying. She turned her head and looked at the young Baiying behind her, the only similarity being their blue eyes and black pupils.

The young Baiying walked up and held onto Iris's clothes, looking up at her future self. She suddenly understood that it was her future self who taught her the language of the dragons.

"Baiying, how did you come here as the older Baiying? What is your purpose? Since you are my daughter, why did you attack me? And what do you mean by wanting to change everything? What does it mean for me and Baixi to be alive?" Iris fired off a series of questions, one after another.

"I am the Dragon of Time. Through my special bloodline, I can temporarily merge with time itself and use it to cross through time and space tunnels, arriving in the future and the past."

"I came back with the purpose of changing the future. I want to obtain my younger self so that the young Baiying can awaken the power of the Dragon of Time in her bloodline, thus changing the trajectory of our fate and avoiding the outcome of you and my sister's deaths." The older Baiying quickly explained her purpose to Iris.

"What is the cost?" Iris furrowed her brows and asked.

"There is no cost." The older Baiying shook her head.

Iris was speechless. How could she possibly believe that?

"Baiying, you are lying to me! If there is no cost, you wouldn't have sent out monsters to attack me in every possible way. You could have simply come and asked for my opinion." Iris sneered, her eyes flashing with a cold glint. If the person in front of her wasn't the Baiying from two thousand years later, she would have killed her without hesitation.

"What is the cost for the young Baiying to awaken the power of the Dragon of Time in her bloodline? And what is the cost for you to travel through time and space? Don't use these lies to deceive me. Are you taking me for a fool?" Iris knew that everything had a cost, so she didn't believe a word the older Baiying said.

"..."

The older Baiying pursed her lips and lowered her head. After a while, she said in a soft voice, "I do have a cost, but it's one that I can bear. And I'm prepared for it. As long as you agree, I can help my younger self awaken her bloodline right now."

"Stop right there!" Iris refused, "War always involves sacrifices, including family, friendship, and love. For a young Baiying, war is cruel. As a mother, I don't want you to take any risks, so please end the secret realm."

"Mother—" the older Baiying anxiously looked at her, reaching out to grab her arm, "Mother, you will really die, and the Shuowang Empire will be destroyed."

Iris remained calm, no matter how much the older Baiying tried to persuade her, she was unwilling to compromise.

"There is no war without casualties," Iris smiled and comforted her, "For me, the future can still be changed, the Shuowang Empire will not perish, and you don't have to bear the cost of time travel."

Baiying's eyes gradually lost their luster, and everything in front of her became blurry. She slowly spoke, "Mother, I don't have much time left. When I disappear, the secret realm will disappear within an hour. I hope you can be vigilant about what I'm about to say."

Iris nodded.

"Firstly, protect Auntie. There's a guy called the Shapeshifter. She can disguise herself, and no one knows her true identity. She will take Auntie away.

Secondly, let go of grudges and ally with other races to weather the crisis. If any Orcs seek help, please lend them your hand.

Thirdly, Mother, please do not be alone. You were killed by the five ancient beasts of Ruined Land.

Fourthly, if you really have no other choice, please bring the young me to the Quanlong Mountain for Bloodline Awakening. Quanlong Mountain is in the far east of the Shuowang Empire."

The fifth and most important point, please carry it out immediately after returning to the Shuowang Empire."

"Alright." Iris nodded.

"Please beat up my sister! She promised to come back safely, but she broke her promise."

As Baiying's words fell, her figure quickly faded, and Iris reached out to grab her, but found that she couldn't touch her. When Iris regained her senses, the surrounding environment had already changed, and the palace had long since collapsed.

She had asked Baiying to return to the Star Gate, as what would happen next might damage her dignified image.

She looked down and found herself standing on the top of Quanlong Mountain, and the Hundred Dragon and Black Dragon had also disappeared.

"Qizhou, Shizhi, obey." Iris spoke in a deep voice.

"Your Majesty!" the two responded in unison, kneeling on one knee.

"Kill all the barbarians from Ruined Land in the secret realm."

"Yes, Your Majesty." The two demon generals responded, their figures disappearing instantly.

Iris looked at Jia Bairi beside her, and Jia Bairi sensed her gaze and immediately spoke, "I'm not one of your demon generals, don't think you can order me around."

"Sister~" Iris coquettishly said, "Help me, please~~"

"Iris, you really are enough. Can't you stop being so clingy?" Jia Bairi looked at her with disdain.

"Sister~~~" Iris clasped her hands together in a praying pose, "Please, pretty please!"

"Fine, I'll help you." Jia Bairi then spread her wings, which were burning with golden flames, and flew away.

It's true that girls who can act cute are the luckiest. Unfortunately, Jia Bairi didn't have the face to do such things. Fortunately, Iris had thicker skin, and when she acted cute, it was like applying honey on bread. Jia Bairi couldn't resist and could only obediently go and do the work.

Mainly because Iris was too tired and didn't have the energy to do it herself.